Dmitry Medvedev calls for Ukrainian independence to ‘disappear forever’

Former Russian president Dmitry Medvedev said the concept of Ukrainian independence “must disappear forever” and ruled out peace talks with the current Ukrainian leadership during a lecture he delivered on Monday.

Medvedev, who is now the deputy head of Russia’s Security Council, gave a lecture on Russia’s “geographic and strategic” borders at the state-sponsored Knowledge First forum, which invites international speakers to give lectures to young people.

Standing in front of an alternative map of Eastern Europe in which Eastern Ukraine is occupied by Russia and its Western regions are divided between Poland and Romania, Medvedev told the audience that Ukraine was “indisputably” part of Russia.

“Russia’s borders do not end anywhere,” Medvedev said, quoting Russian President Vladimir Putin, adding that any peace talks with Ukraine could only be undertaken with a government that recognised what he described as the “new reality” on the ground.

Medvedev appeared to suggest restoring the Russian empire, which was made up of what he described as “great Russia, small Russia and new Russia,” using the imperial names for Russia, Ukraine and Crimea.

Criticising Western policy for aiming to “undermine Russian independence and sovereignty”, Medvedev warned of the growing threat of nuclear war, which he said was now 100 times more likely than it was during the Cuban Missile Crisis.

Despite being seen by many in the West as a relative liberal when he took over the presidency from Putin in 2008, Medvedev has more recently made a name for himself as one of the most vocal and belligerent supporters of the war in Ukraine, and for his regular tirades in which he threatens the West with nuclear weapons.